Digital War
by Angelz of Light
Summary: When the two worlds are covered in darkness, the cause of this darkness unknown, it may be the end for the existing of humans and digimon alike. A war is starting with two different sides. Light Vs. Darkness, Morality Vs. Immorality. Which side will win? Five teams of Chosen Children must band together to win this war, but will it be enough? Contains Yaoi Pairings.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: __Hello! To get back into the gist of writing, I'm starting a new fic. This is dedicated to __**chaoticlittlemonster**__ who was one of my first friends on this site. Thanks a ton to **Black Angel of the Underworld**_ _for betareading this chapter and making it easier to read. She is amazing and I recommend her to anyone who needs a good betareader and she's friendly too!_

**Chapter 1**

It had been four years since the defeat of Quartzmon and Nene had taken some time off of work to come and help Akari arrange a surprise birthday party for Taiki. Her little brother and Tagiru were bringing Taiki to the hall she had booked for them.

As the door opened, everyone yelled at once, "Surprise!"

Taiki jumped, startled, and obviously not expecting it.

"Guys," he said, surprised; a smile spread on his lips. "Thank you. This is the best surprise ever." He looked around, noticing everyone was there.

Nene laughed. "What, did you think we'd forget your birthday?"

Taiki shook his head. "No, I'm talking more about the fact that everyone's here. Even Kiriha and he never makes it anywhere.

Kiriha scowled without any real displeasure behind his expression. "I just don't like crowds. But Nene really wanted everyone together for your birthday so it'd be a real surprise."

"Akari helped," Nene said. "We all worked hard to arrange this."

"Do you like it, Taiki?" Tagiru said happily, gesturing to the hall.

Yuu rolled his eyes at this and glanced over to see his mentor's reaction.

Taiki laughed again and wrapped an arm around Tagiru, squeezing his shoulder. "I love it. Thank you." He looked at Nene, grateful that she had taken time off of work to do this for him.

Everyone had a good time at the party. Taiki tried to catch up with their old Xros Heart group as well as talk with some of the Hunters, some of whom left rather early, not knowing the Legendary Hero that well. Soon it was just their group as well as Ryouma, Ren, Airu, Hideaki, Kiichi, and Mizuki.

"Thank you so much for this, Akari, Nene," Taiki said and the two girls smiled.

"It was fun!" Akari said happily. "Besides, you did mention that you missed us all being together."

Nene nodded. "I'm usually at work but I did miss all this relaxing. Your birthday was a good excuse to take a week off or two. Unfortunately, being an idol doesn't mean much when it comes to those things."

"At least, you got to take a break," Taiki said sympathetically.

As they headed outside, the sky was dark. It was nighttime, so that was obvious, but it was an unnatural kind of dark, like a shadow was hanging over their heads, waiting ever so slowly to devour them whole.

"Do you guys feel odd?" Taiki asked and Tagiru shivered.

"It feels cold," Tagiru admitted, looking around.

A feeling of dread wrapped around Yuu's chest and he reached to grab his sister's hand. Nene squeezed his hand in return, reassuring them both. However, she couldn't tell what it was and that made her subconsciously tighten her hold around Yuu's hand.

"Something might be out there," Akari murmured.

Zenjirou wished he had his kendo stick here so he didn't feel so vulnerable. The darkness felt like it would swallow them all whole, leaving nothing behind.

Kiriha gritted his teeth as memories of his past sunk into his mind, some of them he'd rather forget.

Taiki noticed this and pushed his own painful memories aside. "Kiriha, Nene, everyone fight it!" You're all stronger than this! We'll work this out!"

_Somehow..._

Mizuki tried to help. "Yuu, Tagiru, you're stronger than this!"

Tagiru felt as if he was trapped in his own mind. He saw Taiki and Yuu romantically involved with each other, holding hands and sharing kisses. Everyone was happy, everyone except him. Misery suddenly took a hold of him and he couldn't shake it off. It was a painful claw, tearing his heart ever so slowly as if it was relishing in his agony. They were close, too close for his liking.

He felt as if he'd been forgotten. Without Gumdramon, he was just himself. He wasn't a superstar anymore, he wasn't the hero everyone looked up to. He saw each and every one of them leave one by one without sparing him another glance. Their turned backs made it even colder around him and he suddenly felt dizzy. His food rose in his throat and, for a second, he thought that he might actually vomit.

"Tagiru!"

Someone shook him hard and he snapped out of it, blinking to see Taiki, Yuu, and Kiichi at his side.

"Tagiru, are you okay?" Taiki asked concerned.

Tagiru blinked. "I'm fine." He tried to shake away his thoughts as he looked around, trying to remember where he was. He still felt a little dazed considering everyone had been leaving a moment ago and now everyone was here. It was a little alarming, the change of atmosphere.

"You completely zoned out," Yuu said, frowning. "I know I did, too, but I didn't expect you to."

Tagiru flushed at that. "I just lost focus! That's all…"

It was odd, but for some reason he didn't want Yuu to know what he was thinking. Not when he would leave for Taiki anyway. No matter how much he said that he surpassed Taiki, he really hadn't. The simple fact was clear.

Maybe for that one moment he had, but it was all down to square one all over again. He was useless without Gumdramon, and this darkness was making this situation even worse. He had to focus.

"Anyway, Taiki, what's going on?" Tagiru said. "What's all these creepy shadows?"

"The end," another voice said before Taiki could speak. The group turned to see the old watchman.

"What do you mean?" Tagiru demanded. "Don't talk in riddles, old man!"

The old watchman looked at him before looking at Taiki. "Watch your allies closely, Taiki, because at the end of this, you might not know whose your friend and whose your ally."

Taiki clenched a fist. "What do you mean?"

There were so many questions he wanted to ask, but the watchman disappeared into nothingness, leaving an empty trail behind. He stared, wondering what was going on, and looked around at his friends.

No one spoke.

* * *

Koji and Koichi sat in the living room in the Kimura household. Koji had managed to convince his father Kousei to let him spend the night at his twin's house - or rather fought for it.

"Dad, didn't want you to come, did he?" Koichi said, breaking the silence between the two of them. They were supposed to be watching a movie together but neither of them seemed to be paying all that much attention to it.

"He didn't," Koji admitted. "But I wanted to spend time with you."

Koichi smiled at that. He wanted to as well. He went to a different school from Takuya and Koji so he didn't get to see his brother or the others all that much.

He heard thunder crash outside and frowned. It seemed like a storm was coming. Hearing the thunder crashing reminded him of J.P.

"J.P.'s probably hiding under his bed," Koji joked, guessing what Koichi was thinking.

Koichi laughed. "Probably. It's still kind of ironic he's scared of thunder after being Beetlemon."

"Zoe says he's different when he's a digimon," Koji said, remembering what the blond had told him.

"Oh, I suppose that makes sense," Koichi said, a pink flush rising to his cheeks when his brother mentioned Zoe.

Koji raised an eyebrow, his eyes twinkling in amusement. "Have something you want to tell me, Koichi?" He knew if it were Takuya, he wouldn't have been able to hold his laughter. A small chuckle left him though as Koichi's cheeks turned red.

"Don't tell her, okay?" Koichi said. "I won't be able to look at her in the eye anymore if she knows!"

The amusement left Koji's eyes and he placed a hand on his twin's shoulder. "Even if you outright told me, I'd never do that. Your feelings are yours to share and no matter how close we are or how close Zoe and I are, I wouldn't do that to either of you." He paused. "Just don't start asking me dating advice."

Koichi laughed. "Don't worry, I won't."

His brother might've improved in his social skills, but he was still nothing compared to Takuya and the others.

A chilly wind came in through the slightly open window and, even though this would be a normal occurrence, it made Koichi shiver. Memories he stored away of Duskmon, finding Koji, and all those nightmarish fragments of his life surrounded him. His heart constricted at what he saw. Duskmon. Duskmon was staring right back at him.

"What are you doing here?" Koichi whispered, feeling as if the walls were closing in on him. Where was Koji? Why wasn't he at home anymore? Dread overwhelmed him and he began banging his fists against the walls, desperate for a way of escape.

"I am you, Koichi," Duskmon spoke, his booming voice resonating off the walls. "No matter how much you try to throw me out, a part of me always lives within you, the part that still resents Koji, the part that still feeds on your loneliness. You will never be Koji. You'll always be the twin of darkness."

"I'm not you!" Koichi tried to scream, but it only came out as a desperate whimper.

"Oh, but you are," Duskmon hissed in his ear, his very presence surrounding Koichi and chilling him to the core. He shivered even more. "You're merely dancing on the palm of my hands. You will always listen to my words no matter how far I am in your heart, because I'm always here, always watching; unless I find a new host, like your brother, perhaps?"

Koichi trembled at the thought. He had his own mind, his own heart, didn't he? Then why did he feel he couldn't do anything?

_Koji...Koji, help me! _

It seemed like some link passed between the two of them because suddenly he could hear his twin calling - no, screaming his name.

"Koichi, snap out of it! Koichi!" Koji shook his brother as hard as he could, trying to get him to snap back into reality.

Koichi blinked, suddenly realising he was back in his living room with Koji looking at him, his eyes wide. Oh, thank God...he was back. Duskmon had let go of him, or Koji had saved him. However, he remembered Duskmon's words, his threat of taking Koji if he didn't give up his heart and mind.

Shuddering, Koichi pushed Koji away.

"Koji, go back home," Koichi said, gritting his teeth.

Koji stared. "What?"

"Go!" Koichi cried. "For God's sake, stay away from me! I...I can't! Just go! Please! I'm nothing but a danger to you! I'll drag you down with me, just go! Never come here again, Koji! I beg you! Stay away from me!"

His whole form was shaking and he felt as if he would faint or his head would explode. He didn't know which was worse at this point. Koji's arms wrapped around him and he tried to shake him off but his grip only tightened.

"I'm not going anywhere," Koji said firmly, his eyes flashing with determination. "I'll be dragged with you. I'll face hell with you if I have to, but I won't stay away from you. It may have been five years, Koichi but I haven't forgotten. If we can save Earth and the Digital World, we can handle danger."

"But it was D-Duskmon..." Koichi stuttered in protest.

"I've faced him before, too," Koji said simply, hugging his twin tighter. "I don't care what danger it puts me in but there's no way in hell I'll let Duskmon take you away from me again. Neither will the others." He managed a smile. "Takuya would take on a wrestling match with Duskmon himself if it was to keep us from separating again."

Koichi stared at his little brother for a moment as tears formed at the corner of his eyes. Forgetting Duskmon's threat, he returned Koji's embrace, his tears falling rapidly down his cheeks. A choked chuckle escaped him when Koji mentioned Takuya taking a wrestling match.

"K-Koji," he said through his tears. "He said my heart, my mind, my body, everything was his. No matter how much I deny it, I belong to him, and, if I try to run away, he'll take you instead."

"Not happening," Koji said. "He's not taking either of us. Believe in me, okay? I'll never let it happen."

Koichi didn't reply and just leaned into his twin's embrace and warmth. Somehow, having Koji by his side did help him believe that things really would be alright.


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N__: Thank you for the reviews everyone! Each and every review means something special to me. Thank you once again to **Black Angel of the Underworld **to betaread this chapter for me. I love writing this so much so I hope you keep enjoying it._

**Chapter 2**

Takato found himself wandering outside a familiar place: Guilmon's hideout. Memories of his precious partner stung his heart.

"Guilmon..." he murmured. "I miss you."

"He wouldn't want you to be sad," a familiar voice said; Takato looked up to see his girlfriend Jeri.

"Jeri," Takato greeted softly, not saying anymore.

Jeri took his hand, squeezing it gently. Takato sat down and Jeri cuddled up against him, resting her head against his shoulder. No words passed between them.

The two sat there for awhile, just silently staring into nothingness. The air around them was soothing, appeasing their nerves for a moment. A gentle breeze caressed their cheeks and played a little bit with their hair, but they didn't mind. This was a moment that they couldn't let down. The peace was almost too great when a dark purple wave slithered towards them.

Jeri's heart filled with dread. The moment where Leomon was killed replayed endlessly in her head and she felt Takato shivering next to her. She wondered if he was seeing what had happened with Megidramon shortly afterwards, but soon her memories became so horrifying and vivid that Takato seemed to vanish and all she could see was Beelzemon's claw diving into Leomon's stomach.

Horrified screams left her lips, piercing the air. Tears cascaded down her cheeks as she saw the scene start over and over again. What was happening to her? Did she go back in time? She did, didn't she? Her hands clawed at her head, as if she could tear the memory away, but it never stopped, never halted. It seemed her screams were enough to reach Takato though as two strong arms wrapped themselves around her, pulling her back to reality.

"Jeri?" Takato said softly.

Jeri stared into Takato's eyes and saw her own pain reflected within them.

"Takato..." Jeri whispered. "What was that?"

"I don't know," Takato admitted. "But don't worry, okay? I won't let anything hurt you."

He swallowed in his own memories. Now was not the time.

However, Jeri seemed to sense this and disagreed, wrapping her own arms around Takato, too, burying her head into his shoulder blades.

"I won't let anything hurt you either." Her voice was smaller but just as firm. Jeri would be damned if the people she loved were taken away from her again.

"Takato! Jeri!" Henry's voice cut through the air and the two lovebirds looked up to see Henry and Suzie headed their way.

Takato exhaled through his nose, before turning and smiling at them. "Hey, Henry. What's up?"

"Takato, Jeri, are you okay?" Suzie asked, concerned.

Now thirteen years of age, she was no longer the small, hyper child she was when she had first become a Tamer. Her lavender-coloured hair had grown to a little past her shoulders but she still had them up in ponytails.

Takato shivered. "Haven't you guys noticed?"

Henry looked at the slowly darkening sky and a frown marred his features. It should have been a sunny day. "You mean the darkness? Yeah, it's definitely creepy." He saw some data flickering in Guilmon's old hideout and his eyes widened. "Takato, look."

Takato followed his gaze and saw it as well. "W-what? How?"

"Will we get to see Lopmon and the others again?" Suzie asked, eagerness shining through her eyes.

Jeri smiled. "It seems so. I hope we can see them soon."

* * *

The nightmares had struck him again. Ken could barely sleep at night due to these recurring dreams and he didn't know why they wouldn't go away.

The deal with the dark spore had been done and over with. Right now, he was with his friends but the dreams revolved around in his head, slowly sucking him in. He could barely hear the others talking.

"Ken?" Yolei's loud voice snapped him out of his thoughts. "You're quiet. Something wrong?"

"You have dark circles under your eyes," Kari pointed out, concerned.

"Dude, is everything okay?" Davis asked, staring at his best friend.

Ken looked down, flushing a little. "I just haven't been able to sleep all that well, that's all. Bad dreams."

"What about?" T.K. asked, speaking up. He had been observing Ken quietly as the others talked.

Ken hesitated. He should tell his friends but he didn't understand the sequence of the dreams himself. He opened his mouth to tell them not to worry but then saw the others fading away. Ripples of water surrounded him, a familiar sight beginning to take place.

"Ken!" The last thing Ken saw was Davis trying to grab his arm and failing as the world disappeared.

"Isn't that precious?" A familiar voice echoed from the place that appeared to be the figment of his worst nightmares: The Dark Ocean.

It wasn't like that was the worst of the news though as the owner of the voice stepped out. It was a person who was supposed to be dead, someone they had all seen die, someone who had sacrificed himself to restore the beauty of the digital world. That person was...Yukio Oikawa.

"How?" Ken managed to stutter out. He had so many questions, the primary one being how the hell was Oikawa still standing here? However, his voice seemed to have gotten stuck in his throat. Words formed in the back of his mind but they just wouldn't come out no matter how hard he seemed to try.

Oikawa simply laughed and grabbed Ken by the shoulder.

"Oh, don't worry about background knowledge," Oikawa said in an almost croon-like tone. "All you need to know is the end is coming soon. Everything you hold dear, that person who is special to you, they'll all soon bend to the most powerful being alive in both the real and digital worlds. You're lucky I'm being kind enough to break it to you. Maybe you won't suffer as much."

Ken had to bite his lower lip to not cry out in pain. Even though Oikawa didn't have very sharp nails, he felt as if he was trying to crush his shoulder blade then impale him within the grip of his fingers. He squirmed, thrashing around, trying to escape, but the grip was much too tight.

The waves began to rise from the Dark Ocean, surrounding the two of them, as the deadly water began to pour on them.

Ken cried out as each droplet of water slammed onto his body like heavy rain. If that wasn't painful enough, the water started to surround his body, swallowing him whole. Nausea overwhelmed him and he felt as if someone had walked over his grave. He wanted to throw up, splutter, anything to get rid of the water that seeped into his body. He couldn't breathe. His lungs ached in sharp, twisted agony and all he wanted was for it to all end. His strength began to weaken and his eyes were beginning to shut.

It seemed this satisfied Oikawa though as he made the water disappear, causing Ken to collapse. Smirking, he picked up the weakened boy in his arms.

"What do you want with me?" Ken asked weakly. "I don't have anything to give you anymore."

"Oh, but you do," Oikawa purred in his ear. "I've always been interested in you, Ken Ichijouji." He stroked his hair in an almost affectionate manner, although the touch was possessive. "Just relax, boy. No one's coming for you. It's just you and me."

He had begun walking whilst carrying Ken in his arms and laid the boy down in a room.

Ken tried to get up with the limited strength he had. He had to get back to his friends. Davis wouldn't want him to quit, he'd want him to stand up and fight. He had managed to seal Daemon in the Dark Ocean once, he could fight this.

However, it seemed Oikawa read his thoughts and gave him a painful kick in the ribs. Ken let out a muffled sound of protest, which was all he could get out with his limited energy.

_Wormmon...Davis...I'm sorry, _were his last thoughts before allowing his world to turn black.

* * *

Matt had been finishing up practice with his band when he had gotten a text from T.K. about the situation with Ken. He called him up.

"Hey Teeks, I got your message," Matt said, concerned. "I'll call Tai and then we'll be right over, okay? The others are scattered all over the universe so it'll just be the two of us for now."

"Okay, Matt," T.K. said. His brother sounded like he was trying hard to remain calm. "Just come quick though. Everyone's in a panic and I don't know how much longer Kari and I can keep everyone calmed down."

"Just hold up a little bit longer, okay?" Matt said softly. "We'll be there as soon as we can."

"Thanks, bro," T.K. said, hanging up.

Matt went to pick up Tai who had recently moved out and bought his own apartment. Once he caught up with him and explained the situation, the two friends began heading to the park.

Suddenly, Matt stopped as he heard a rustling of the leaves and turned around. A shiver ran down his spine.

"Matt, are you okay?" Tai asked, concern depicted clearly in his voice.

Tai's voice sounded so far away, like it wasn't really there, before it gradually returned.

"You haven't changed at all, Matt." Tai's voice resonated in the blond's ears. It almost felt as if he was repeating the words, as if he was taunting him about the past, about the time the two of them had fought one another.

"That's not true!" Matt cried, trying to fight off the voice that was trying to get into his head. He didn't have time for this, T.K. needed his help.

"Yes, going to protect TK again, aren't you?" It felt odd, strange even. There was a vague familiarity in Tai's voice. It wasn't his voice and yet it was. He didn't really understand it, it was much too confusing. Why was Tai taunting him? Wasn't he the one who had said they should let bygones be bygones?

"Tai, why are you saying this?" Matt said, clutching onto Tai's hands, desperate to find an answer to his questions.

"Matt, what are you talking about? Hey, Matt, come on! Snap out of it!" Tai cried.

The concern in his voice seemed far away and left Matt feeling more confused than he previously had been. Was Tai taunting him, or was he as confused and worried about the situation as he was? He knew he wasn't as good as Tai, nor was he that good of a brother but still, Tai had always supported him. Now, what was he doing trying to trick him?

"Tai?" Matt murmured, squeezing the other's hands. "Please, this isn't the time to play games..."

"We have plenty of time, Matt." Tai's voice was cold and cruel, a prominent contrast to Tai's normal, confident voice that made him feel like everything would be alright again. "You'll always be beneath me. You've always treated T.K. like a child. The truth is, he's sick of you. He'd rather have me as his brother any day. You're nothing."

"Tai, stop," Matt said.

A cold laugh echoed in his ears. "Why, Matt? Does it hurt? Does it hurt that T.K. and I consider you nothing but worthless? You haven't changed at all. You're still pathetic. Truth is, I only called you my best friend 'cause I began to pity you; but we're not in the digital world anymore."

"So?" Matt said, his voice cracking.

"I don't need you by my side anymore," Tai said simply. "I think Kari will be glad I finally stopped pretending to like you."

Pretending? It had all been an act then…

Tai had never really forgiven him for back then. He had never really forgotten anything that had happened in the first adventure; but, he had seemed so genuine, believing in him till the last minute, waiting for him even if it meant him getting hurt. He had told him he always believed in him.

All of that was a lie. Everything was lie. He didn't want to believe it but Tai was saying this with his own lips so it must be true.

He felt the darkness beginning to wrap around his body. It felt comforting and he just wanted to relish it, savor every last inch, allow the Cave of Darkness to envelop him whole, protect him from these feelings or, at least, carry him away from them. For a second, he saw a shadowy figure that was outlined by the shadows and, for a second, he thought it was Cherrymon…

However, it was just that, a second.

Something slammed into his cheek, causing him to go staggering back.

"Matt, you idiot!" Tai screamed at him furiously.

Matt blinked and realised Tai was standing in front of him, his face contorted in a mixture of worried and angry.

Matt touched his cheek, realising Tai had punched him. "Tai? You didn't have to punch me. I understand now. You don't have to pretend anymore."

Tai bristled, torn between wanting to strangle Matt or hug him. He did neither and grasped his best friend by the shoulders.

"I'm not pretending, you idiot!" Tai snapped. "You're my best friend! I've been calling out to you forever but you're just not listening to me!"

Matt backed away again. Tai was playing tricks on him again, why? Why did he keep pretending? He backed away from the other and ran. He didn't know where he was going but definitely knew one thing. He needed to be alone before he went crazy. If he was around Tai, this might continue to happen to him.

_I'm sorry T.K., but I can't help you right now...not like it matters. You have Tai anyway._


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N__: Hello everyone! You guys are amazing, you know! All those reviews, all that help, thanks, means everything to me. I hope you continue supporting me. I'm by no means the best writer but, with your support, I can be. Let's keep our fandom alive, huh? Just to get to know you wonderful people a little more, here's a little question to answer in your reviews: What's your favourite color? Mine's lavender. Thanks to **Black Angel of the Underworld **for betareading this chapter!_

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Taiki decided to gather the Hunters and Generals at his place, since the Watchman had instructed them to be together as he had a plan to help. He didn't know how this would be solved yet but they'd find a way. He looked around, noticing Hideaki and Makoto weren't there.

"Tagiru, where's Hideaki?" Taiki asked. "Didn't you call him?"

"He won't answer my calls or texts," Tagiru said. "I don't know why. He wasn't at your party either, Taiki."

Yuu frowned at this. "That's strange. I mean, he helped us in the final battle then he just disappeared. Also, how are we going to contact the digimon?"

Taiki didn't reply at first, waiting for the Watchman to appear. When the man finally did, Taiki immediately went to him, his eyes serious. "Do you know what's going on? I mean, back there, that darkness, it affected everyone and it became really hard for us to snap Tagiru out of it. We were worried."

_Yeah, right. Worried? Quit faking, Taiki. _

The bitter thought took growth in Tagiru's head, surprising even himself. It wasn't like him to doubt Taiki's sincerity.

"There's something big out there," the Watchman said in a grave tone. "Something I don't think your group will be enough to handle. He is a digimon that much I know, but more powerful than any enemy you've faced before. You won't be able to handle this alone, Taiki Kudou. Let me call the other legendary heroes and their teams so we can stand more of a chance."

"Will Tagiru have to wield the Brave Snatcher again?" Ryouma asked.

"It's not Quartzmon," Airu said quietly. "But that weapon seemed to have amazing power so it would definitely help."

Tagiru glanced at Taiki, wondering if he'd still want him to wield that when it'd undermine him. The thought unnerved him a little. What if Taiki's feelings for Yuu led to him wanting Yuu to wield the Brave Snatcher?

"Tagiru?" Taiki asked, noticing him looking his way.

Tagiru flushed and looked away. "Wouldn't you want Yuu to wield the Brave Snatcher instead?"

Taiki blinked and glanced at Yuu who looked alarmed at the very thought.

"Why would he?" Yuu said before Taiki could speak. "Taiki entrusted his goggles to you. He chose you as the hero to represent us all. Not me." He furrowed his brows. "What's wrong, Tagiru? You've been acting really weird since that night."

Tagiru didn't know how to respond. He knew he shouldn't just grasp at straws. Taiki was one of the kindest people he knew and Yuu was his best friend, but, somehow, the voice held some truth in it. He didn't know what it was but that voice...it felt like it was his own heart speaking to him.

"It's nothing," he said. "What do you need to do, old man?"

Yuu opened his mouth but Ryouma touched his arm, causing the blond to look at him, confused. Ryouma just shook his head in response.

"I'll bring you all together, but you may need to go in groups of two or three," the Watchman said. "If you go as a group, you may be ripped apart or the overflow of data may lead to major casualties."

"Tagiru?" Taiki said, pulling him gently towards him with Yuu; Tagiru shook away from his grasp.

"I'm sorry, Taiki," Tagiru said softly. "But I think you and Yuu should go together."

"Actually, I was thinking you could have gone with Yuu and Ryouma," Taiki said to him, smiling. "Since I'm going with Nene and Kiriha. You know, like old times and all."

Ryouma glanced at Tagiru, seeing the doubt in his eyes. He did wonder what it was. "I'll go with Tagiru. Ren, Airu, why don't you go with Yuu?"

Airu looked delighted at the prospect and clapped her hands merrily whilst Yuu bit back a groan, knowing how clingy the female Hunter could get.

Tagiru shot Ryouma a grateful look. He needed to get away from Taiki and Yuu if he was ever going to work out anything about that strange voice. He moved to Ryouma's side.

"Akari, Zenjirou, will you two be okay?" Taiki asked his friends.

Akari and Zenjirou nodded.

"We'll stick together," Akari assured Taiki with a small smile.

"Like always," Zenjirou added in his agreement.

Kiichi moved to Mizuki's side who smiled. "You wanna stick together?"

Kiichi nodded. "Is that okay?"

Mizuki laughed. "'course! You seem like a cool kid."

Once everyone was put into pairs or groups of three's, the Watchman reloaded his digimon Clockmon.

Clockmon released the attack. A green portal appeared, much like the one Taiki and the other Generals used to travel in between zones in their first adventure. However, in this one, no one had to step inside for the portal sucked them in.

* * *

"Hey." Someone shook Taiki, trying to wake him up. Taiki stirred, opening his eyes to see Nene's worried face.

"Taiki, are you okay?" Nene said.

Taiki sat up and looked around, seeing a bunch of unfamiliar faces. They were all in some sort of forest and a part of him wondered if they were in Green Zone, Shoutmon's home land.

The Digital World had been divided into zones when they had first came, but that changed when the Death Generals took over. However, now that they were defeated, he didn't really know what it was. He shook that aside to focus on the situation at hand.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said. "What's happening?"

Kiriha shrugged. "It seems these guys are friends of the legendary heroes we fought."

Taiki sat up and looked around more carefully when he saw Takato. "Oh, hi! I remember you. I guess Kiriha's right then. You guys are friends of the other legendary heroes."

"In other words, he's asking about the goggle-brains in your groups," Kiriha said to the others before Takato could speak.

"Kiriha..." Nene said, face palming.

Kari giggled at the bluntness of the comment. "Well, that would be my brother Tai and our friend, Davis." She frowned. "Although, we were brought here so suddenly."

"No kidding," T.K. muttered. He hadn't really answered the other's questions. His mind was on Ken and knew Davis was probably freaking out far worse than the two of them combined.

"Is something wrong?" Taiki asked, noticing the looks on their faces.

"Our friend Ken was kidnapped by some sort of darkness," Kari said worriedly. "It came after Ken before and we were just planning to go save him. But…we were brought here instead."

The youngest boy in the group finally spoke up in a quiet tone. "We were headed to our friend Koichi's house, too. I'm Tommy, by the way. I was there for the battle, too, but in my digimon form so you probably don't recognise me."

The portly boy next to him spoke up. "I'm J.P. I'm worried about this darkness thing, too, but that's why we're all here together, right?"

"Pretty much," Taiki said. "The Watchman thinks our combined strength is needed to defeat the enemy, something stronger than Quartzmon." He scratched the back of his head. "He's also the one who brought us here together, I think."

Jeri shivered. If the enemy was so strong, who would they lose this time around?

Takato reached over to squeeze her hand and she smiled at him, relaxing a little.

"Did he give any more information on the enemy?" Takato said. "Like who it is?"

Taiki shook his head. "No. But since we're in the digital world, I assume we'll find out. Just for introduction's sake, why don't we all introduce ourselves? I'm Taiki Kudou."

"T.K. Takaishi."

"Kari Kamiya."

"Jeri Katou."

"Takato Matsuki."

"Tommy Himi."

"J.P. Shibayama."

"Nene Amano."

"Kiriha Aonouma."

Taiki nodded. "Right. So that's everyone, right? Now, how we're going to run into the digimon? Kiriha?"

Kiriha smirked. "Your digimon's the king of this world. Can't you just ask someone?"

Nene giggled.

Taiki flushed and made his way to go ask some digimon passing by. It was easily found that Shoutmon's castle was not too far away from them.

He was surprised he had never visited his own partner's castle before. This, in fact, felt awkward since everyone was counting on him to lead. While he didn't mind when it was Akari and Zenjirou or even Nene and Kiriha, leading this many people made him nervous, especially when he didn't know what he was really up against.

As they entered the castle, they were surrounded by thick, luscious walls on either side of them with chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. Taiki whistled at the fact that his best friend had really gone down the cliché style.

"He sure is flashy, isn't he?" Taiki muttered.

Nene laughed gently. "He's king."

"Exactly," a familiar voice said as another large door was opened by the guards. All the digimon were there, even those that Taiki didn't expect.

"Shoutmon!" Taiki said happily, running to his partner's side. "I didn't expect you to go all out on your throne." [The exclamation point already emphasizes the volume of his voice so "shouted" is unnecessary.]

Shoutmon smirked. "I'm king! It'd be a shame if I wasn't at least a bit flashy."

Ballistamon coughed. "A bit, right."

Shoutmon glared at him. "Don't wanna hear it from you, bud. You're the one who said I was too down to earth."

"That didn't mean becoming on top of everything," Ballistamon said with a sigh. "Seriously, you know how to overdo things."

"Ne, ne, come on you two," Taiki said, waving his hands. "You're sounding like Tagiru and Yuu. Stop."

He laughed before looking back, seeing everyone united with their partners.

"T.K.!" Patamon cried, tackling his best friend into a hug. "I missed you!"

T.K. hugged Patamon back, laughing with tears forming around his eyes. "I missed you, too."

"Told you we'd meet again," Kari said, kneeling down besides Gatomon, who purred and nuzzled against her partner.

"I never doubted you, Kari," Gatomon said with a soft purr, before jumping into her arms. "I've missed you."

Guilmon lunged, practically tackling both Takato and Jeri to the ground. In fact, he did. He jumped on Takato, knocking him to the floor.

"Takatomon!" Guilmon said happily, licking his partner's face and making him to laugh.

"Easy there, boy," Takato said, patting Guilmon on the head while Jeri giggled at the sight.

"Did you bring Guilmon-bread for me, Takatomon?" Guilmon asked, blinking his eyes innocently. "Hi, Jeri!"

Jeri smiled warmly at Guilmon while Takato laughed even more.

"Sorry, no Guilmon-bread this time, boy," Takato said, looking apologetic. "The situation was kinda too desperate for it. I'm just glad I got to see you again. I didn't think I would." Some tears cascaded down his cheeks as he hugged Guilmon tighter.

A hole had formed in his heart when Guilmon was torn away from him after all the good times they shared: from when he first drawn Guilmon, to when he became Gallantmon as well as working together to save Jeri from the D-Reaper.

To have such a victory followed by such a loss that separated him from his best Digital friend had been heart-wrenching. He knew Henry still hadn't forgiven his father for being a part of that despite much encouragement from himself and Rika to do so.

"Don't cry, Takatomon," Guilmon said, gently wiping his partner's tears with his claw. "We're together now."

Jeri wrapped her arms around Takato. "He's right. You two are together now. That's enough."

Takato smiled, pulling Jeri into his embrace with Guilmon. "Yeah. As long as I have you, Guilmon and my friends, I can walk on fire barefoot."

Jeri giggled. "Okay, knight in shining armour. No need to go that far."

Nene wrapped her arms around Sparrowmon as the jet nuzzled her cheek. Mervamon laughed fondly, wrapping her arms around Nene and Sparrowmon. Nene leaned close to Mervamon's embrace while keeping her arms around Sparrowmon.

"It's good to see you two again," Nene said with a content sigh. "You have no idea how good."

"Back at ya, Nene!" Sparrowmon chirped.

"Been awhile, huh?" Mervamon said with a chuckle.

"Definitely," Nene murmured. "I hope we can handle this one."

Sparrowmon frowned. "Why wouldn't we?"

Worry flashed in Nene's eyes. "When the darkness first attacked, I thought it would take Yuu away from me again. I saw that moment in my head when Yuu was stolen and I could only watch helplessly. I don't want to relive that again. It seemed like an illusion but if history repeats itself..."

Mervamon's grip on Nene tightened in an almost possessive manner and Sparrowmon nuzzled Nene's cheek again.

"We'll do everything in our power to keep that from happening," Mervamon said, her voice firm. She still remembered how it was seeing Ignitemon on the wrong side and, if she hadn't had Nene's support back then, she didn't think she would have been able to get through that pain like she had.

Sparrowmon nodded agreement. "That's right! I won't forgive anyone who makes Nene sad or tries to take someone she loves."

"We won't turn our back on you," Taiki said, coming over to Nene.

"Guys," Nene murmured; Taiki took her hand, squeezing it firmly.

"I told you, Nene, your pain is my pain," Taiki said. "I still want us to get rid of the sadness together. I'll always be there for you and for Yuu, too. He's like a little brother to me."

"Yeah, Nene, everyone's family to Taiki, especially you," Shoutmon said, grinning; Beelzemon laughed.

"Play nice, Shoutmon," Beelzemon said, winking at Taiki who flushed.

"Cut it out, you two," Taiki said, pulling his hand away from Nene.

He glanced at Dorulumon and Cutemon for help but Cutemon was laughing uncontrollably while Dorulumon just rolled his eyes, amused.

Kiriha smirked, seeing how flustered Taiki was becoming, and opened his mouth to make a comment when Dracomon nudged him in the leg.

"Don't," Dracomon chided playfully, and Kiriha rolled his eyes, but his smirk didn't falter.

Ballistamon, however, decided to take pity on Taiki and changed the subject seeing Tommy and J.P. talk to their digivices. "Your partners didn't arrive here."

"We possess the legendary spirits," Tommy said with a smile. "It's kind of hard to explain. Didn't Takuya explain it to you?"

"I remember bits and pieces," Taiki said. "You guys become digimon or something right?"

J.P. nodded. "Yeah. We use digimon spirits with different elements and stuff to spirit-evolve/" He paused for a moment. "It sounds weird explaining it but it'll make sense once we get into battle."

"Well, you won't have long to wait!" a booming voice said.

T.K. and Kari tensed, paling as they heard the voice, and exchanged glances.

"Is it...?" T.K. began.

"But it can't be," Kari said.

"We have to protect Shoutmon's castle and this zone!" Taiki said quickly. "Come on!"

T.K. and Kari hesitated briefly before following the others out.

T.K.'s eyes widened in horror as his worst fears were confirmed. How on earth was this possible? How did he return? Standing before them, completely unscathed, and, as if no battle had taken place between them, was Piedmon. Surrounding him were Vilemon.

Patamon flew besides him, clearly ready to take action although hoped T.K. would snap out of his shock soon enough.

T.K. tried to calm down. It might be another Piedmon, one they had never faced before, but somehow, the smirk on Piedmon's face told him it was the same one. The smirk was of triumph, almost of victory even. They hadn't defeated him or, if they had, he had somehow rose from the dead.

"T.K.!" Kari's frantic voice snapped him out of his thoughts. "Stay focused!"

"Is something wrong?" Tommy said.

"We've faced Piedmon before," Kari said. "We defeated him, too. Seeing him alive again just unnerved us a little. T.K.'s partner was the one who defeated him." She shook her head. "This is impossible…"

Taiki frowned at this, remembering the Watchman's words about not being able to recognise who was their enemy and who was their friend. He exchanged a look with Kiriha who nodded.

"Everyone, don't worry about that now and focus on the battle!" Kiriha called out. "Get ready!"


	4. Chapter 4

_Guys, you are the best you know? Your advice, your critique, your compliments, they honestly make me who I am as a writer today. Thank you! And Yua-hime, I pick on everyone don't worry, Davis/Daisuke will get his fair share of torture in this too he. *Evil smile* Keep reading everyone! Also, please tell me if Rika is OOC. I haven't seen Tamers in awhile. Thanks to _**Black Angel of the Underworld **_for betareading this chapter. _

**Chapter 4**

T.K. tried to get himself together. Patamon and Kari were by his side; he wouldn't lose them or let them get hurt. He just needed to focus on what was going on then and there. He knew they could digivolve normally since there were no Control Spires around.

"Okay," he said shakily, before it became firm. "Patamon, digivolve!"

"That's the spirit!" Patamon said, beginning to glow.

"Patamon digivolve to...Angemon!"

Kari looked at Gatomon who nodded, before raising her D-3. "Digi-armour energise!"

"Gatomon armour digivolve to...Nefertimon: The Angel of Light!"

Beelzemon stopped where he was, seeing Angemon. "A-Angemon?"

Horror crossed his face. Logic left him. The possibility that this might be another Angemon never crossed his mind. He began to tremble and felt a hand on his arm, looking up to see Taiki. Shoutmon, Ballistamon, and Dorulumon all moved to his side as well.

"Beelzemon..." Taiki said. "It's not him. I know it hurts, but it's not him. I'm sorry."

"Isn't that precious?" Piedmon mocked T.K. "Looks like you hit a soft nerve, Child of Hope."

T.K. glanced anxiously at Beelzemon who took another step towards Angemon.

"Oi, Beelzemon," Shoutmon said, getting ready to move forward and stop him; but Beelzemon shuddered briefly before stepping back.

_I have to focus, _he told himself. _It's not even the same Angemon. I have to focus on the fight._

He tried to calm himself down and push back the haunted memories that threatened to take over. He felt Mervamon grasp his hand while Taiki squeezed his arm once more.

He saw Shoutmon glance at him anxiously but didn't seem to know what to say.

"Beelzemon," Taiki said, "even if he's gone, you're not alone. Aren't we enough?"

Beelzemon stared at Taiki for a moment before taking a few deep breaths and nodding, a small smile gracing his features. "You are."

Misery glazed over his eyes for a few moments before it flickered and gone. He was about to turn back when he heard a scream.

Piedmon surged forward, launching an attack at Kari and Nefertimon.

"Trump Sword!" Four swords, in pairs of two, soared towards Kari and Nefertimon, not giving them enough time to dodge.

"Kari!" T.K. cried, dashing forward.

Angemon blocked the attack with his rod. He deflected another sword and leaped to the side, dodging another blade that embedded into the ground behind him. One sword managed to brush past Angemon's defense, aiming straight at Kari.

Nefertimon was ready. "Rosetta Stone!"

A large grey stone appeared in the air but the sword pierced through it, the debris blasting everywhere.

Before anyone could move, T.K. jumped in the way, the sword impaling his lower abdomen; his blood squirted onto Kari's horrified face, her mouth open in horror.

"T.K.!" Angemon and Kari both screamed as Taiki rushed to their side.

Kiriha reloaded his partners to fend off more swarms of Vilemon. As if things weren't bad enough already, a swarm of LadyDevimon and SkullSatamon appeared.

"Pyro Sphere!" Guilmon said. A ball of fire launched from Guilmon's mouth and slammed LadyDevimon in the face, stopping her from attacking Takato and Jeri.

"Nice shot, Guilmon!" Takato said.

"Thanks," Guilmon replied, glowing at the praise from his partner before turning serious. "Shall we digivolve?"

"Guilmon digivolve to...Growlmon!"

Guilmon glowed bright red and Growlmon took his place. He knocked another LadyDevimon to the side, gutting her with his elbow.

"Pyro Blaster!"

A roar of flame rushed towards SkullSatamon as it headed towards them. It blasted him away and it faded into data but, two seconds later, it reformed without a scratch.

Meanwhile, Kari knelt down besides T.K., tears falling down her cheeks. Her fingers trembled and she clasped her hands together to make them stop. God, there was so much blood.

"T.K." She hardened her resolve and applied pressure on his wound, trying hard not to shake. The crimson liquid was slick and felt disgusting under her hands. T.K.'s blood…this was all T.K's blood.

Taiki gently pulled away her shaking hands and took over, sending her a soft smile.

"Relax, he'll be alright," Taiki assured, before looking up at Nene. "Nene! Help Kiriha out!"

"Already on it!" Nene said.

JetMervamon flew at a few LadyDevimon, blasting them out of the air, not stopping or giving them a chance to reform.

Nene looked back at the two boys who didn't have any partners and both typing frantically into their digivices.

"Are you two going to help out?" Nene called out.

The younger one, Tommy, looked up.

"We can't spirit-evolve!" Tommy said in a panicked voice.

"Spirit wha...?" Nene was suddenly pushed out of the way of an oncoming attack by MetalGreymon. She covered her head from the explosion. "Thanks, Kiriha!"

"Tommy, we'll figure something out," J.P. said, although the fact that they couldn't spirit-evolve was worrying.

Tommy wanted to believe his friend but, from the way he was speaking, it looked like he himself didn't believe it. He wondered if Takuya and the others had been able to spirit-evolve. He didn't understand. Kumamon was right there! Why couldn't he spirit-evolve?

Everyone was getting hurt! Takato and Jeri seemed to be handling things somewhat well, but they were still on the losing end. No matter how many digimon Growlmon defeated, they kept on reforming. This was insane...wasn't there anything he could do? Anything J.P. could do?

This was like the first adventure all over again. He clenched his D-Tector tightly. He didn't want to be useless.

"Kumamon, please, help me," Tommy said desperately.

"I'm sorry, Tommy," Kumamon's voice came from the D-Tector. "But we're helpless. Something big is coming for you and the others. You need to be strong. Right now, all you can do is watch."

"But why?" Tommy said. It wasn't fair!

"Because not even we can challenge that until it's time," Kumamon said before his voice disappeared.

Something strange happened then. Kumamon and Korikkakumon's spirits disappeared from his D-Tector, causing Tommy to clutch his device almost desperately.

* * *

Tagiru had woken up awhile back. In his group were Ryouma, Tai, Izzy, Davis, Rika, and Takuya. Izzy and Rika were friends of two of the Legendary Heroes.

Tagiru hadn't been talking all that much; Davis was causing enough of a fuss as it was.

"I'm telling you, Ken's in trouble!" Davis said impatiently. His eyebrows were creased with worry, his face developing sweat. Ken had just disappeared! Why did no one understand how worried he was about his friend?

"Davis, calm down," Tai said. "We'll find him!"

"Aren't you worried about Matt at all?" Davis retorted to his mentor. "Seriously, he ran away from you! Does T.K. even know what happened between you two? He'll be worried to know that his brother hates you!"

"Matt doesn't hate me!" Tai said, although he sounded as if he didn't believe it himself. Considering the way Matt had looked at him. The pain, the disappointment, the sadness...just remembering that look on his best friend's face made him cringe. He really wanted to find him and clear things up, but Tagiru had said they'd find more answers from a digimon named Shoutmon.

Davis raised an eyebrow. "Dude, even you don't sound sure of that. But anyway, how long until we find this castle?"

"We're nearly there," Tagiru said. "I think I hear some noises. Ryouma, do you hear that?"

"I think so," Ryouma said.

A smile finally came to Tagiru's face and his eyes brightened a little. He almost looked like his old self, although a shadow flickered in his eyes briefly.

"That's great!" Tagiru said. "It means we'll see Gumdramon and the others soon. Maybe you'll finally meet your partner, too, Ryouma!"

Ryouma's expression was slightly sad. "Yeah, maybe."

"You lost your partner?" Rika turned to regard Ryouma, having been quiet and observant of the surroundings otherwise.

"Sorry to hear that, dude." Takuya sent a sympathetic smile although he felt odd. He felt as if his heart was constricting for some reason he couldn't explain.

Ryouma shook his head with a small smile. "It's okay. Tagiru believes I'll meet him again. So does Taiki."

"I'm sure you will," Tai said. "Our friend Willis lost his partner but he got him back."

"Ken did, too," Davis said to Ryouma before turning back. "'course you may not get to meet him if we don't hurry up already!"

"Davis," Izzy groaned. "Ken's not that far away, you know. In fact, according to my calculations, he's a lot closer than we think he is."

"What?" Davis rounded on Izzy, grabbing him by the collar, both with eagerness and with a renounced hope. "Where? Where is he?"

"Davis!" Tai cried, pulling him off his friend, exasperated. "Don't knock Izzy out in your excitement."

"Sorry," Davis mumbled, pulling away. "I'm just worried. He...Ken doesn't deserve to suffer anymore. He's redeemed himself enough for his mistakes. How much more is he gonna have to take?"

Rika was tempted to say something to that but kept her mouth shut. She knew about Ken from the T.V. show but revealing that right now was unnecessary.

"Some battles can't be fought together," Rika told Davis plainly. "It's cool that you want to help your friend, reminds me of another goggle-head I know. But there are some things he has to face on his own."

Takuya shook his head in disagreement to that. "No one has to face things alone. Not when you have friends. Everyone has inner demons but we also have our friends to help us face those demons. We'll find him." He looked at Davis. "After all, we should never give up on our friends, right?"

"Even if they give up on us, huh, Tagiru?" a voice said, and a dark aura surrounded Tagiru.

"Tagiru!" Ryouma cried, running towards him.

He was suddenly pushed back by some sort of force field, causing him to stumble back into Rika.

"Hey, you okay?" Rika said.

"I'm fine but...Tagiru!" Ryouma squirmed free, running forward.

"Ryouma!" Tagiru tried to reach him, struggling against the shield trapping him. His eyes widened as a figure appeared behind him. "H-Hideaki?"

"Oi, let him go!" Davis cried.

"Who are you? What are you doing?" Tai said. The face looked familiar but he couldn't put a handle on where he had seen it before. The name was just on the tip of his tongue.

"Be careful of him, Tai," Izzy said warily.

Rika shifted from one foot to the other. "Oi, Tagiru, get away from him!"

Takuya stared, confused at why everyone was so worried. It was just another human, right? They could handle this. Gosh, these people were as paranoid as Koji!

Tagiru averted his gaze to Hideaki. "Hideaki...what's going on?"

Hideaki wrapped his arms around Tagiru. "It's okay, Tagiru. I won't let anything happen to you."

Tagiru squirmed away. "Dude, nothing's happening to me as long as you don't attack my friends. Ryouma could have gotten hurt, you know."

"What friends?" Hideaki said simply. "The ones who have already left you behind?"

"T-that's not true!" Tagiru protested. "No one's leaving me behind, Hideaki! My friends care about me a lot. Taiki...Taiki believed in me to lift the Brave Snatcher!"

"He had no choice," Hideaki whispered in his ear. "He's always taken pity on those he considers below him. His kindness is only an act, Tagiru. Come with me and I'll give you what you deserve, maybe even more."

Tagiru shuddered. Hideaki's voice echoed all around him and he wondered, for a moment, if Taiki's kindness was just an act. If he was really nothing more than manipulative. It didn't seem like that though...he always seemed so sincere.

"I love you more than they ever will," Hideaki purred, stroking a hand down Tagiru's cheek. "Just relax."

"Hideaki, I don't..." Tagiru felt hesitant. Hideaki was being so kind but, at the same time, he didn't want to turn his back on his friends. He shivered a little as the other pressed his lips onto his neck.

He began to feel drowsy, like he would pass out at any moment. No, he needed to stay awake. He had so many questions.

"R-Ryouma..." Tagiru murmured. "I can't...I can't stay awake. Taiki, Yuu, they care, don't they?"

"Tagiru, don't listen to him!" Ryouma said, trying to get through to him. "He's lying to you! You're precious to Taiki and Yuu! Especially Yuu! You're more precious to him than you know! He'll be devastated if you go with Hideaki!"

"Will he?" Hideaki mocked Ryouma. "Why keep him in fool's paradise? I'm the only one who cares about Tagiru, the only one who will give him my undivided attention. All of you, you're just selfish. Aren't they, Tagiru?" The hand stroking Tagiru's cheek moved to gently stroke his hair.

"N-no...I dunno..." Tagiru's mumbles lapsed into silence as he went unconscious in Hideaki's embrace.

"You..." Tai bristled. "How could you lie to your friend like that?"

"But it wasn't a lie," Hideaki said, holding the brunette closely to his chest. "Tagiru needs someone who can show him just how special he is. Yuu always bickers with him; it's about time he realised everything and everyone comes at a price."

Rika clenched her fists in fury and moved forward with a strong urge to punch Hideaki in the face but, like Ryouma before her, the forcefield threw her back, sending her tumbling to the ground.

"You bastard!" Her fists were shaking. "You're worse than I was! People…living things aren't prizes or things to be bought and used like that!"

"Tell that to his friends," Hideaki said, nonchalantly. The dark aura around him became stronger and he disappeared, making to go back to Headquarters.

* * *

Koji walked silently behind his group. The other members in his group were Akari, Zenjirou, Yolei, and Cody. The four of them seemed to hit it off well, but he trailed behind them.

Despite being more social, he still didn't interact all that much unless he needed to. Not to mention, his thoughts were on Koichi.

_Koichi, I hope you're okay._

"Dude, what's your name again?" Zenjirou said, falling back. "You okay? Not all that social, are ya?"

Koji stared. This guy reminded him of Takuya.

"Koji," he said curtly. "And I don't really know any of you really until we work together."

"We kinda did in the battle with Quartzmon," Akari said.

"Davis told us about that," Yolei put in as well.

"It's alright," Cody said. "It isn't easy to talk to new people after all. Once we need to work together against the enemy, I'm sure we'll become more comfortable. Right now, most of us are strangers to each other."

Koji had to admit he was impressed. For being younger than the rest of them, the kid sure was mature. "Yeah, we battled against Quartzmon, but that was mostly us coming to help Takuya. Besides, the..." He gestured to Cody, frowning a little as he realised he didn't remember his name.

"Cody," the boy supplied.

"Yeah, Cody has a point," Koji said. "We'll learn more about each other through battle."

Akari and Zenjirou exchanged a glance.

"Gosh, he reminds me of Kiriha," Akari muttered.

"Yeah, just as stubborn," Zenjirou said tactlessly.

"Oh, now that isn't nice," a voice said.

The hairs on Koji's arm stood up at the familiarity of the voice. They hadn't even met up with the other's partners yet. This was not good. He grasped his D-Tector as the living being of his and his brother's nightmares stepped out. It was Duskmon.

"Who...?" Akari began to ask but didn't get the chance as Duskmon raised his eyeballs.

"Lunar Plasma!" Duskmon said, lasers of light shooting from the eyeballs on his body. It was carefully aimed and everyone except for Koji was sent flying deep into the forest.

Koji's fists clenched.

_Come on, Lobomon! I need you!_

"Don't worry," Duskmon said. His voice sounded almost reassuring. "It's not you I'm really after. You're just the hook in the fishing rod to lure the fish in. Isn't that precious? Ghost Move!" He teleported himself behind Koji, grabbing him.

Koji widened his eyes and he began squirming.

"Let go!" Koji cried as he struggled harder. "Lobomon, Takuya! Koichi, help!"

Akari tried to get to her feet. "We have to do something." Her fingers bled and a large gash ran down her leg. She tried to advance forward but stumbled, crashing to the ground.

"Akari..." Zenjirou tried to reach for her but clutched his stomach instead, which had cuts littered across his stomach, making it difficult for him to move.

Cody had passed out while Yolei was trying to reach him.

"No one can help you," Duskmon said with a smirk, raising his red sword and smashing it against Koji's head.

Koji cried out in alarm, as blood began to seep from his head. He resisted and squirmed, although the pain made it difficult for him to move.

"Don't struggle," Duskmon said coldly. "I need to keep you alive until he comes to me."

He slammed the sword against Koji's head once more.

Koji bit his lower lip to keep from crying out. He wasn't going to give Duskmon the satisfaction that he was in pain. However, his vision did blur this time and he didn't see what happened next before everything turned pitch black.


	5. Chapter 5

_Hello, everyone! I bet you're wondering what's happening with Ken and Matt, huh? Well, you don't have to wonder any longer. Also, some of the romance with the characters will come to surface. Warning for attempted sexual assault and semi-graphic torture in this chapter. Also, who should Matt be paired with: Tai or Sora? It's too odd pairing him with Mimi and he needs some serious love in this fic. Thanks to __**Black Angel of the Underworld **__for betareading this chapter. _

* * *

**Chapter 5**

Darkness revolved around the place where Matt resided. He felt as if sharp, thin needles were piercing every part of his body, like he was trapped in an inescapable dimension.

"T.K..." Matt murmured. "Tai...Sora...Joe...Mimi...Kari...Izzy..."

Despite everything, he still wanted to reach out for them. Even if it was fake, he wanted to hold onto their strength.

"It's not fake, Matt," Gabumon's voice spoke through the darkness; the blond saw a small glimmer of light.

"G-Gabumon?" Matt said. "You're not pretending too, are you? They're all pretending. That's why...that's why we've all drifted apart. Our group...we're never together anymore, always too busy. I don't think...I don't know if it's real anymore."

"Matt, you have to fight it!" Gabumon said, his voice becoming stronger. "Look inside your own heart. I can't answer those questions for you. That's something you need to figure out on your own. Just remember...I'm always here with you."

Once again, Matt felt tears build up in his eyes, a lone tear running down his cheek. It was like the first adventure all over again. Cherrymon's confusing words had deterred him back then but Gabumon had promised him even then to support him in whatever decision he made. Even now, his partner was supporting him when he himself wasn't sure what the right decision was.

"I don't know." Matt placed a hand on his forehead, trying to find a light out of this dark space he was trapped in. "I don't know how to figure it out. I feel like this darkness will swallow me whole. "T.K...he's in trouble. I can feel it. I need to go to him. I need to find him. Make sure he's okay. Gabumon, I'm still not sure of everything. I'm sorry, but I want to be with T.K. I don't know if I want to be with the others but I want to be with T.K. I don't want him to ever feel as if I'm not there, as if I've let him down somehow. Our parents aren't there for us but we have each other, don't we? Do we need anyone else really?"

Gabumon looked at him, putting his paws on his shoulders. "Do you? Why don't you tell me that?"

Matt exhaled through his nose. "I don't know. I don't think we do. We're more than enough. We're family. Our feelings are real. Theirs aren't. Friendship...it's all fake but love isn't. T.K.'s the only family I have. If I can't believe in anyone else, I'll believe in him."

The dark place disappeared and Matt could feel himself being shaken by someone.

His eyes opened and he saw Joe was the one shaking him, surrounded by a bunch of strange people.

"Thank goodness," Joe said, relieved. "I didn't know if you'd wake and I couldn't figure out what was wrong with you, since your vitals appeared to be normal."

Matt blinked. "Gabumon? Where is he?"

Joe looked alarmed. "Gabumon isn't here, Matt. None of the digimon are."

Matt didn't seem to comprehend that. "But he helped me. He made me realise that T.K. still needs me. Did Gabumon leave, too?"

"Matt..." Joe said, worried about his mental condition.

Yuu stepped forward. "I think you hit your head, Matt. We haven't exactly met up with the Digimon yet. Our friend, Shoutmon, and his place are just around the corner. He probably knows where the Digimon are."

Airu smiled. "That's Yuu for you. He always knows everything!"

Yuu blushed a little. "Not really..."

Ren scowled. "I could have told you that."

Henry rolled his eyes. This boy reminded him of Kazu. "Save it for the battle, Ren."

Suzie giggled. It was so typical of her brother to be able to make a comment like that so calmly. "Henry, leave them alone."

However, the younger Wong sibling walked over to Matt, kneeling down beside him gently. "Don't worry, I'm sure we'll find your little brother soon as well as your partner. I think you were just having a bad dream. Don't worry, okay? Your friend Joe was really worried about you."

Matt shrugged off Joe's worry dismissively. "I don't need friends." He didn't, not yet at least. That was what he and Gabumon had decided in the dream. Was it a dream? Or a sign? He didn't know.

Koichi, the boy who had been rather quiet, glanced at Matt, concerned. He sort of reminded him of himself after his period as Duskmon.

"You always need friends." He said this so quietly that he wondered if Matt even heard him; but, apparently, he did because Matt glanced his way, causing the Kimura brother to blush.

Henry smiled a little, however, at Matt's comment. "You sound like Rika was at first, Matt."

"Glad to know I'm being remembered so fondly, Henry," a familiar voice remarked sarcastically as Rika and their group came to them.

Henry laughed. "Of course, Rika. Why wouldn't I?" He winked.

Rika rolled her eyes but a small smile graced her features.

Yuu glanced over at the group. Ryouma was looking downcast and the other group members all looked uncomfortable. He searched over the group once, before his eyes narrowed. "Where's Tagiru?"

Ryouma squirmed, uncomfortable at the question. How many people was he going to fail?

Tai decided to take pity on the boy and answered, "Actually, he's been kidnapped."

"You mean manipulated," Davis muttered; Tai jabbed him in the ribs, sending him a scolding look. "Ow!"

Yuu didn't know whether to be confused at why Hideaki would do that, worried about Tagiru's safety or enraged at Ryouma for not looking out for Tagiru. It was irrational of him, considering it was his and Taiki's fault for leaving Tagiru to Ryouma, but the other didn't want to be with them back then. "Ryouma, what happened?"

Ryouma exhaled through his nose. "Hideaki appeared. He grabbed Tagiru and was saying all these strange things about you and Taiki. He said he was the only one who cared about Tagiru and no one else could love him as much as he did. He also...also insinuated that you and Taiki were in a relationship and would leave Tagiru behind. Tagiru tried to resist but..." He shuddered as he recalled what had happened.

He had been so helpless in the situation. It seemed no matter what he said, nothing seemed to reach Tagiru, like he was in another place or time. A place where he couldn't touch or find. No matter what they did, Tagiru was too far to reach.

"Ryouma..." Airu said, going over and wrapping her arms around his shoulders.

Ren moved over, looking at Ryouma in the eyes. "Go on. Say it. No matter what, it's not your fault. Got that, Yuu?" He looked at the blond, a silent warning in his eyes.

Airu just squeezed Ryouma's hand, trying to bring comfort to him although sent Yuu a pleading look to calm down.

Having his two best friends by his side did give Ryouma some courage to talk again as he looked to Yuu.

Yuu exhaled through his nose but managed to calm himself down enough to look at the other. "Go on. It's alright." His mind screamed that it wasn't but he ignored it.

"Hideaki sort of...kissed him," Ryouma said, shifting from foot to foot. "Tagiru passed out after and they disappeared. We couldn't do anything because he was protected by some sort of shield."

"He said he took him to Headquarters though," Tai said, trying to help.

"I wonder if that's where Ken is, too," Davis said, looking at Izzy.

"The D-3's can't get a reading on him anymore," Izzy said. He had tried to locate Ken on the way and the D-3 was marking him as being close but, at the same time, he wasn't.

Yuu felt his heart fill with dread. What was wrong with Hideaki? Weren't he and Tagiru friends? Even though he himself had never liked Hideaki much, Tagiru seemed to really hold the other to high regard. And where did this nonsense come from that Taiki and he were in a relationship? That seemed like incest almost, considering how his sister felt about Taiki.

"I...I have to find him," Yuu said. "I have to help him. I don't feel that way about Taiki. He...he doesn't feel like that either! Why...why would Tagiru think that? It's not like him! How? Where are these Headquarters? We need to find them!"

"And I thought Tai and Davis overreacted," Izzy said dryly.

"Hey!" The two goggle-heads protested at once.

Takuya laughed. "Koji says I overreact, too."

"You do," Koichi said.

Takuya huffed. "Not that much."

Koichi simply raised an eyebrow at that. "Oh, really?"

Rika and Henry exchanged amused glances.

"Think it's a goggle-head thing?" Henry said.

Rika laughed. "Well, our goggle-head tends to get more enraged if that can be considered an overreaction."

Suzie giggled. "He only gets enraged when it comes to Jeri. Maybe love does that to you, ne, Henry? Would you be that angry when it comes to Rika?"

Rika blinked, confused, glancing at Henry curiously as the boy turned a dark shade of red.

"S-shut up, Suzie," Henry muttered, looking everywhere but Rika.

Suzie giggled, poking her tongue out at her older brother. "Not gonna shut up until I finish playing matchmaker!"

"Not to rain on your parade, but my best friend just got kidnapped," Yuu said, harsher than he intended. "Can you have your little party later?" He realised how rough his voice sounded and immediately felt guilty, flushing a little. "I'm sorry, it's just..."

Davis walked over, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I know how you feel."

Yuu blinked, looking at the goggle-boy. "W-what?"

"My best friend's been kidnapped, too," Davis said. A sad smile crossed his face. "Even though I can guess, I don't really know who kidnapped him. At least, you know who you're looking for. I can't say I do but I know I'll find him. We'll find Tagiru, too. Let's start by that castle, okay? Once we have our digimon partners, we'll be able to do more."

The others murmured in agreement and Yuu nodded, trying to calm himself down enough to focus.

"Okay, let's do it," Yuu said. "Let's get our partners."

Koichi made to follow the others but suddenly clutched his head, falling to his knees.

"Koichi!" Takuya said, running to his side.

"T-Takuya?" Koichi said, sounding tired all of a sudden. "Koji's in pain, something's happened to him."

"Oh, no," Takuya said. He hoped Koji hadn't been kidnapped as well. He didn't want anything to happen to his best friend. He stepped up, coming to a decision. "Koichi, go on ahead. Tai?" He passed his friend over to the original leader of the goggle-heads who took him. "Take care of Koichi for me, okay?"

"Don't be stupid!" Koichi said. "You can't face whatever it is on your own."

Takuya grasped his D-Tector. "I'll be okay. Koji and I have always faced things together so there's no way I'm leaving him to face this all on his own." Before anyone else could protest, he backed away, turning the other way, and breaking into a run.

Tai sighed. "Don't worry, he'll be fine. He has the goggles, he won't dishonour the meaning of those at least."

Koichi still looked worried but allowed Tai to support him. "I hope you're right."

* * *

Even as he opened his eyes, he could see only darkness. Looking around, he blinked, dreary from the attack on him earlier. He could remember going unconscious, the world around him had went black. At the time, he wondered if he had died and, even now, he wasn't too sure if he was alive or stuck in some purgatory state of mind.

He could feel his wrist tied even through the numbness had overcome his body but even so, he struggled to untie himself, his mind in a fog but clear enough to remember that he had to get out of this place, this place so full of darkness. Managing to stand up, Ken could feel his legs giving in under him, his balance still not under control, and found himself nearly toppling over.

He needed to think. Ken needed to get out of here before Oikawa came back.

"Don't think about it," a voice hissed, guessing his very thoughts as Oikawa stepped into the room.

Ken still felt drowsy and tried to move around but couldn't do much.

What would Davis do in this situation? How would he find a way out of this?

Before he could come up with a good solution, the numb feeling in his body left and his mind began to try to concentrate on making plans, but failing as his body seemed to beg for the pain to stop. A blast of energy suddenly came forth, knocking the young man off his feet, nearly knocking the breath out of him.

Ken became queasy as he tried to stand up, not wanting to let Oikawa have the last laugh, an action that he wished that he didn't do.

The indigo-haired boy had never viewed himself as a weak man, and it was one of the few things that he took pride in even if, in this moment, it made no sense for him to think about that.

"Are you going to fight back?" Oikawa's mocking voice said. "It's no use, you know." He twisted his leg around, kicking Ken roughly in the stomach.

As Oikawa grabbed him by the hair, a roar of indignation welled up inside him and he began struggling against him.

"Let me go!" Ken cried with all the strength he could muster.

"Stop fighting," Oikawa hissed, sinking his teeth into Ken's neck. Blood trickled from the wound, causing the other to cry out in alarm.

Tears formed in Ken's eyes from the pain but he pushed them back. He refused to give this monster the satisfaction of crying out.

_Wormmon..._Wormmon would want him to fight back. Davis would tell him not to surrender no matter what. He would tell him that he had already suffered from his past mistakes and that he didn't need to suffer anymore for what he had done as the Digimon Emperor. T.K. would tell him to have hope no matter how bleak this situation seemed for him. Kari would remind him gently that they were all with him in spirit. That, even though it felt like it, he wasn't alone. Yolei might start yelling in his defence and Cody would tell him he was stronger than this.

Practically hearing his friend's voices in his mind, he kicked the other viciously in the stomach, and broke free, flopping to the ground. Ken panted for breath, looking up at the man with determined eyes.

"It hurts," he admitted. "It hurts a lot. But you know what?" A bitter laugh escaped his lips. "I'm not alone."

Oikawa gritted his teeth as he lifted Ken up by his hair, sliding the back of his head against the rocky wall. It sliced the back of his head; Oikawa's eyes shone in glee as the boy's blood seeped slowly onto the wall.

"W-Wormmon..." Ken managed to get out, his D-3 beginning to pulsate softly as a portal opened.

"That's the spirit, Ken-chan!" a familiar voice said, and Ken could see through his blurred vision, his digimon partner appearing in the light.

* * *

Hideaki arrived inside the headquarters, which was on the top of a spiral-shaped mountain, and took Tagiru to a room.

Tagiru stirred. "H-Hideaki? What's going on?"

Hideaki sat next to him, pulling Tagiru into his arms. "I was worried for you, Tagiru."

Tagiru blinked. "Worried for me? Why? I'm not hurt."

"Oh, Tagiru," Hideaki said with a sigh, pressing his lips to Tagiru's; the other boy was too drowsy to resist. "You're so innocent. The others use you as a tool and you don't even realise it."

Tagiru shook his head. "T-that's not true. Yuu cares about me...Taiki, too. They do."

"D-do they?" Hideaki said, raising an eyebrow, toying with the buttons on Tagiru's shirt.

Tagiru squirmed, his eyes widening. "What are you doing? Hideaki, please stop...even if they don't care...I do. I wanna be with them."

"Shh...just relax," Hideaki soothed, kissing Tagiru to distract him.

Tagiru wanted to resist, but it felt somewhat nice. He didn't understand, was he being disloyal? He loved Yuu...he had for awhile, he had wanted to save his first kiss for him, but was it really worth it? If Yuu didn't care, who was he saving himself for? Hideaki's kiss made him feel wanted but, at the same time, a small part of his mind felt it was still wrong.

Hideaki's warm tongue rolled over his lower lip and Tagiru gasped at the sudden sensation. The other boy shoved his tongue inside his mouth, sensually exploring his wet cavern.

Tagiru whimpered slightly in pleasure as Hideaki's tongue relentlessly probed his mouth, not even noticing him removing the rest of his clothes until he pulled away.

Tagiru flushed, trying to cover himself with his arms as he realised he was fully naked. "P-please stop...I don't...I feel uncomfortable."

Hideaki hummed. "Do you?" He rubbed his thumb over the other boy's nipples, causing him to let out an unwilling moan of pleasure. "Don't you love this feeling?" He began planting kisses down Tagiru's naked chest. "If they cared, wouldn't they have found you by now?" His voice was slightly muffled from his kisses, his hot breath making Tagiru tremble.

"N-no, they..." Tagiru mumbled, tears filling his eyes at his own confusion.

He didn't know what to think. No one had ever made him feel this good before but, at the same time, this wasn't the person he wanted to feel good from. However, for once, he wanted to be the loved one again, but not by everyone. He didn't want to just be a superstar this time. He wanted to be Yuu's superstar.

"You never will be," Hideaki said, running his hand down Tagiru's inner thighs while slicking his other hand in lubricant.

He trailed his tongue on Tagiru's sensitive skin, relishing in the trembles from the other boy and the sweet taste he offered to him.

Tagiru tried to move away. "Please, Hideaki! Please don't do this! I'm not ready. I don't..."

Hideaki sighed. He could take Tagiru right then and now. He really could. By the time Yuu and the others got here, Tagiru would be his. But he needed to be patient despite disliking the notion.

He pulled away. "Alright, Tagiru, if you're not ready, don't worry. I won't take you. But...remember..." He kissed Tagiru on the lips softly, exploring his mouth once more before pulling away; a trail of saliva hung from Tagiru's mouth, connecting with Hideaki's tongue who licked his lips almost hungrily. "They'll never treasure you the way I do."


End file.
